The 'Good' Life
by AgentYork-FT12
Summary: Life is difficult..especially a soldier's. This is the story of Sean (York) and his team of seemingly 'special forces' soldiers in the US military, and their tour in Pakistan. NOTE: This is a Modern AU, and may not always seem realistic. I have taken select Freelancer, and other characters from RvB and placed them in this universe. Updates will be regular, weekly at the latest.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

York woke up in a cold sweat; it was the second time he woke up this early. He sat up in his bunk in the barracks and rubbed his eyes. He looked over at the clock which read _2:15 am_. He let out a sigh and pushed himself back down on his bed and closed his eyes, and woke up three hours later… _.._

BEEEP! BEEP! BEEP! York jumped up and nearly fell out of his bunk. To him it was like he had just closed his eyes. He held himself back from saying some choice words, got out of bed, and headed for the showers. Everyone else was already showering… North, Wash, and Maine.

North was York's best friend, Wash was a close friend, and Maine was just the silent brute. They were all good at something different; York was the infiltration man, North was the marksman, Wash was just really good with his assault rifle, and Maine was a ridiculously built man that for some strange reason always ended up in a fist fight no matter who it was.

After finally getting into his shower, York took some 'Suave for Men' shampoo and set a generous amount into his hands and rubbed it through his hair. _Shit,_ he thought after noticing he had failed to turn the shower water on. He did after groaning rather loudly, and washed his hair. He then took out a washcloth and then put some 'Axe Apollo' on the cloth and cleaned himself. These showers were rare, so each of them took a nice long shower to enjoy the lukewarm water.

After they all finished showering and brushing their teeth, they headed to the mess hall. For York, North, Wash, and Maine it was a small tent where they were given their daily ration of MREs. They each dug into their MREs and enjoyed them for a good forty-five minutes.

They heard some footsteps from behind them and an African American man yelled, "Officer on deck!" They each jumped up from their benches and popped into a salute, standing there for a few moments as the Platoon commander entered the tent.

"Hello men," the strong Southern-accented man started, "you are some of our best soldiers in the platoon, and I have a job for y'all." The currently saluting men did not know what to think of this on-the-spot offer, so they remained silent. The officer sighed for a moment before saying, "I suppose y'all would like some more details, hmm?" He then realized they were still saluting him, "At ease fellahs." York, North, Wash, and Maine followed his orders and relaxed from their salute, and turned to face him.

York spoke first, "So... uh... what exactly does this entail for us?"

"Well, 'York', this will involve you and your team being sent deep behind the Taliban's lines. You are familiar with Guerilla Warfare, yes?" York nodded, "Alright. You drop in tonight."

York and his team all said in unison, "What?!" They all shook their heads at the Platoon commander, "Sir, we know you are our Captain, but you are-"

"Captain Church," the Southern man pointedly cut off before walking out of the tent without another word. He was followed by the African American man, which left the four friends surprised and unsure of what to do.

"What?" Wash said with a squeak of his voice.

"What do you mean, 'what?'" Maine said with a gruff tone.

"I mean, what the hell was that about? He barely even said what he wanted us to do!"

York shrugged and turned to face Wash, "I think he might have wanted us to go see him." Wash nodded.

"You're probably right."

North finally spoke after standing there with a look of deep thought on his face, " Lets go."

The four of them walked up to Captain Church's tent. They were each in their standard UCP camouflage fatigues, which were pretty sweaty (Northern Pakistan is a weird place).

"Sir," they each said in unison as they entered his tent.

"Ah, it seems you four have made a decision or something?" Captain Church said in a questioning tone.

York took the lead. "Yes sir, we have, and we have decided to accept your offer." He looked back at Wash and North, who gave him a reassuring nod before he looked back at the captain.

"It wasn't really a choice, but do you have any questions? Most people do," Church said before he let out a brief chuckle.

York nodded and said, "Yes sir. What exactly will we be tasked with?"

Church sighed. "Like I said, you are going to drop in behind Taliban lines. Your job will be to kill a Taliban leader located in the town of Nandwal, Pakistan." He paused and nodded to Maine, who looked like he had a question.

"Isn't Bin Laden… dead?" Maine said in a confused voice.

"That's Al Qaeda, not the Taliban, and that doesn't mean he can't be replaced, son." said Church in a slightly irritated tone.

"Well sir, what kind of equipment will we be given?" North said to change the topic before it got more hostile.

"You will be allowed to use your standard equipment: York will be given his shotgun, you will be given your rifle, Wash will be given his assault rifle, and Maine will take on the role of Machine Gunner; However, you may bring any other equipment you deem necessary to complete your objective."

They all nodded and Wash spoke up, "When are we leaving? It's nearly 5:15 pm."

Church smiled and said, "You leave in exactly one hour, so get packing."

After about 20 minutes of setting up their plate-carriers, rucksacks, and helmets, they brought their gear to the MH-60 Blackhawk, which was specially equipped for stealth raids.

They got their gear and weapons set in the helicopter, they each took their seats in the chopper. Captain Church walked up and poked his head in and gave a few nods before pulling his head out and walking off.

"That was weird," Wash said.

"Yep," the other three agreed.

About a minute after the weirdness, the helicopter pilot yelled back at York and his team to tell them to strap in for the ride. York looked at his watch as they lifted off; it read _6:16 pm_.

 _A minute late,_ he thought to himself as a smirk crept upon his face. He watched as Wash leaned his head back on the not-so-comfy headrest and closed his eyes; York decided to do the same.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! The Taliban were taking pot shots at the helicopter.

York and Wash were rudely awoken by North, who managed to hand everyone their guns as the gunfire grew in number. One bullet had apparently gone through the windshield and killed the pilot, and the co-pilot was struggling to keep the helicopter out of the fire. After three minutes of absorbing gunfire, the co-pilot finally found a suitable landing zone and the team ran off the Blackhawk with their gear and weapons.

York looked down at his watch again and it read _8:02 pm_. The team ran off into what little brush coverage there was and slowly crouched down into a would-be 'prone' position. It was an extremely humid night, and they were already sweating. The 80 lb rucksack, 20 lb plate-carriers, and 8 lb to 10 lb weapons did not help their case either. After sitting under the brush for a good 20 minutes, they heard some voices speaking in Arabic, and they were getting louder.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Taliban fighters were right in front of them, but luckily they had not spotted York and his team yet. They were spreading out and yelling things in Arabic, clearly the leader was not satisfied. After the Taliban troops had spread out and searched for a solid 30 minutes, York and his team were getting antsy.

"York." North said in a whisper.

"What?" York responded.

"We need to move, man."

"Agreed."

North nodded and proceeded to tap Wash and Maine on the shoulder to get their attention.

"Alright, we are moving." York said in a quiet but confident tone.

They all nodded and followed him in the moonlit night. They landed about a mile from a town that was known to be Taliban controlled, and they were making good time to it. York looked at his watch again and it read 9:15 pm. They continued on their stealthy movement to the town, and avoided any Taliban patrols that they might have come in contact with. About 45 minutes had passed and the team was set up on top of a ridge that was overlooking the town. North took his M40 sniper and peered through the scope. He watched as the Taliban patrols moved about the town, and he also noticed the lack of women or children

York looked at North, "North, you set up here, and we will move in. Be sure to use a suppressor and to only fire if need be."

"You got it." North said in a cheery tone, and proceeded to move up to prep a position for a makeshift sniper nest.

York turned to Wash and Maine, "Alright, the rest of us are moving into the town. Ready?"

They both nodded and said, "Yes sir."

The three cautiously made their way down the ridge, and slowly made their way into the town. The team was all equipped with Night Vision goggles, suppressors, Maine carried an LMG along with an M27 LAW, and North was equipped with a thermal sight on his M40 sniper rifle (which looked incredibly awkward).

North was the first to radio in. "Yo York, you've got a team of five tangos approaching your position."

"Roger, thanks for the heads up, but we'll take care of em," York responded.

As the Taliban team approached where York and his team were sitting, they were already fully prone and ready to fire. The Taliban were about 20 ft in front of York, Wash, and Maine.

York whispered to his team, "Three… two… one..."

POP! POP! POP! POP! POP! Each Taliban soldier was dropped with one bullet each. York and his team quickly stood up and threw each of the Taliban bodies in the brush they were in to keep their presence unnoticed for as long as possible. After moving the bodies, the team proceeded even further into the town. At this point they heard various voices, but most of them were men. The streets were empty, trash was all over the "sidewalk" (really a side of the street).

At the end of the street was a four story building surrounded by a seven-foot-tall stone wall, which towered over the small two and one story buildings that made up the bulk of the town. It was lit with a mix of bright floodlights, candles, and barrels lit with fire. There were Taliban soldiers on patrol around the compound in teams of two along with would-be marksman on the roof of the building. One of the Taliban stuck out. He was dressed in white.

Before York could ask who that was, North quickly said over the radio, "You see that guy in the window there? All white? That's our guy."

"This is going to be tough." said Wash.

"Always the optimist." said Maine.

York ignored the brief banter between the two and said, "Alright, this will be difficult, but we can do this. We have North providing overwatch, and sniper support. Maine, you have your M27, and Wash… well… we got you."

"Hey!" Wash butted in.

York laughed ever so slightly before saying, "Maine, do you think you can land a shot right in that window on the second floor?" He pointed when he was talking about the window.

"Easily," responded Maine in a confident tone.

York quickly responded, "Then do it."

Maine let out a weird "happy" grunt before unslinging his M27 and setting it on his shoulder. He lined up the shot with the specified target, then looked back to make sure his backblast was clear, and fired the M27.

The Taliban leader standing at the window didn't even see it coming. One minute he was there, and the next there was a large hole in the building where he was. York, and Wash high-fived Maine, but that is when the gunfire began. They quickly busted open a door of a small hut and piled in, barely missing the gunfire from the now furious Taliban fighters.

"North, cover our exfil!" York shouted into his radio.

There was no response, just easily distinguishable fire from North's M40. York and his team were now dashing out of the down, making some near misses with walls and dead-end corners. As they were running down their on-the-fly escape route, a Taliban fighter kicked down a door, running right in front of the team. He was armed with an AK-47, pointing it at them. He pulled the trigger and a flurry of bullets were being fired at them. One bullet grazed Maine, who seemed to be unaffected. York ran forward, extending himself from his group, raising his M104 shotgun, and firing two shotgun shells at the man, killing him instantly. After dashing through the labyrinth that was the town, York and his team finally made it out, making their way back to North's position as quickly as they could. When the team regrouped on the ridge, York radioed back to base.

"This is Alpha requesting immediate extraction! We have completed our mission, but the Taliban aren't too happy about it!" screamed York into the radio.

"Copy that, Alpha. Evac is on the way, along with CAS. ETA five minutes, over and out," said Aiden Pierce.

Aiden and York turned off their radios, and York turned to his team, "Alright guys… we gotta wait five before we go home. You know what to do." They nodded and turned to set up defensive positions the best that they could, but that's when a grenade landed right in the middle of the group, three of them jumped away, but York was right by it. His back was turned, still fiddling with his radio, or it was shock… maybe both.

"York, look out!" North screamed.

York turned, his eyes wide after seeing the grenade at his feet. He dashed away, managing to somehow escape the killzone of the explosive, but got hit by a stray piece of shrapnel.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

North ran over to York after the grenade had exploded to make sure he was okay.

"Shit! York is down!" yelled North.

"Calm down North. Now's not the time to lose your cool," said Maine in a surprisingly calm voice as he fired his LMG at the advancing Taliban forces. Several bullets whizzed around the team's heads.

"The evac should've been here by now," said Wash as he fired three rounds from his M4 Carbine.

"I know, I know," said Maine, firing a few more rounds. "Less talk, more shooting."

After the firefight went on for ten minutes straight, the guys were getting worried.

"Where is the evac?" said Maine in a slightly irritated tone.

"How should I know? I asked the same question ten minutes ago," replied Wash.

North ran over to Wash and Maine with a concerning look on his face, his hands covered in blood. "Hey..uh..guys? York is bleeding pretty bad. I patched him up the best I could, but we need that evac now."

"Did you hear that?" said Wash between an exchange of rounds from him and a Taliban fighter that was below the ridge in an open plain.

Three helicopters were on their way to Alpha's position: two AH-1 Cobras, and one Blackhawk. They were closing fast and the Taliban saw them too. Half of the Taliban soldiers turned to face the three oncoming helicopters, firing their various weapons. One of the Cobras split off from the group, firing its 20 mm gatling gun at the crowd of Taliban soldiers, ripping them to shreds. The Taliban troops were now in a panic and scattered. One Cobra kept them busy while the other Cobra and Blackhawk flew over to Alpha's position, touching down quickly.

North had York in a firefighter carry while Maine and Wash followed behind. After everyone had settled onto the Blackhawk they flew out from the hot zone and back to base. North looked down at York with a frown on his face.

This could have been avoided, thought North.

Maine looked over at Wash who was sitting to his left, "Hey, how are you holding up?"

Wash jumped, almost having fallen asleep. "I'm okay. I'm glad all of us made it out."

Maine nodded. "Agreed."

After the long ride back to base they finally arrived. A medical team was already waiting at the helicopter landing pad, ready for York. As the Blackhawk's side doors opened, the medical team grabbed York, laying him on the gurney they had with them, and started to wheel him off to the infirmary.

"I hope York is going to be okay," sighed North.

Wash walked up behind North and patted him on the shoulder. "It'll be alright. At least Carolina doesn't know, right?"

North turned, his eyes wide. "Oh no. Carolina is going to freak out. Do not even contact her in any way. She does NOT need to know about this."

Maine popped out of nowhere. "Have York tell her about it when he gets out."

They all nodded at Maine's suggestion and headed to the barracks, too tired to worry about anything else.

York tried to open his eyes, but he could only seem to open one eye. The room he was in was a bright sterile white.

"Ugh…" he grunted.

"Holy shit. You're awake," said North, sitting up in his chair.

A nurse walked in York's room and started changing his IV pack.

"Yeah. I'm awake," breathed York.

The nurse peered over at York before walking out of the room. A few minutes of silence later, and the Nurse entered the room with what looked like a doctor.

"Hello York. I have good, and bad news. Which would you like to hear first?" asked the doctor who stood with a clipboard in one hand and a pen in the other.

"The bad news," mumbled York.

"Alright. I don't know how to say this, but during the grenade explosion a piece of shrapnel cut your left eye. You will never see out of it again."

York sat there like a deer in the headlights. "Wha- what?!" he York.

"Calm down York, please," asked the doctor in as calm of a voice he could muster.

York was breathing extremely heavily, but managed to calm himself. "Okay..okay."

"Now for the good news." said the doctor followed by a sigh of relief.

The doctor looked over at North, who stood up and walked over to York.

North leaned down toward York and whispered into his ear, "We're going home."

"When?" asked York, unsure of what his reaction should be.

"Tomorrow, so please speak to Carolina before then, boss," said North, giving York a light punch in his shoulder followed by a smirk. He turned to face the doctor, calling him over.

"When can York get out of the infirmary?" asked North in an eager tone.

"Right now, actually," said the doctor, catching both York and North off-guard.

An overwhelming feeling of accomplishment, happiness and sadness filled York's heart, yet one thing remained on his mind since his initial deployment: Carolina.

The next morning, York got up from bed and looked at his watch that read 8:20 am.

Perfect, thought York. He turned and dashed over to the barrack's laptop and powered it on. After its initial stages of powering and logging on, York came to the desktop that had a picture of Alpha on it. He ignored himself from the picture and clicked on the 'Skype' icon. When it finally powered up he saw that Carolina was online, and he immediately hit 'Start video chat'. After a brief wait, Carolina answered, she looked beautiful as ever. Her red hair was in its usual pulled back state and her pretty green eyes looked at York, her eyes suggesting concern.

"York? Are you okay?" asked Carolina, clearly looking at his newly covered left eye.

"Yeah. I feel like a million bucks," responded York.

"Too bad you don't have a million dollars," sniggered Carolina.

"Ha ha. Anyways, onto why I am calling you this late. I have something important to tell you," started York.

"Oh?" said Carolina.

"Yep. I'm coming home….. today," said York blankly.

Carolina's eyes got wide. "Do you know when you will be here?"

"Probably around eight to ten in the morning your time," smiled York.

"Great. I should be ready by then. See you soon. Love you," said Carolina.

"Love you too," said York before hanging up. He sat there for a few minutes, registering what had just happened. He then quickly stood up from the desk and started to pack his bags.


	4. Chapter 4

**AN:** Hey guys! It has been quite a while since another chapter has been posted. Sorry for that, and sorry for this shorter chapter. I'll post one later today that should be longer than this, so just stay tuned.

Also, if you want to keep in contact so that you can bug me about more chapters, just PM me if you want my steam profile link or something.

 **Chapter 4**

York jumped awake, he sighed when he realized it was just the turbulence shaking the C-130 transport plane he and the rest of the platoon were in. He looks from his left to his right, seeing North on his left, and Wash on his right. York was in between the two, and Maine was off in some other seat on the plane for obvious reasons. York adjusted himself in his seat, closing his eye. _This is going to be a long flight_ , thought York. He started to think about what he was going to do when he finally made it back home, but ended up closing his eyes, trying to get some more sleep.

North felt some movement to his right, and turned just in time to see York close his eye. He grinned, knowing now was the perfect opportunity to get York back for all the pranks in the Pakistan base. North leaned as close to York's left ear as possible, and started singing.

"Nothin' could be finer than to be in Carolina in the mor-" North was cut off by York who punched him right in his stomach.

"Don't even." growled York.

"Yeah yeah, just tryin' to have some fun, York."

Wash glanced over at the two, laughing. "You guys should like..talk about something else."

"You think?" said York who had turned his head to look at Wash.

"Alright, what are we going to talk about then?" asked North.

"Oh, I got it!" exclaimed Wash.

"Okay..?" huffed York.

"What should we do when we get back? Like after we get settled back in." asked Wash.

"I would say drink, but maybe we should just go somewhere to eat." said York.

North nodded. "Maybe we should all get together somewhere."

"That's what we just agreed-" said Wash before he was cut off.

"That's not what I meant. What I meant was that we should get whatever 'family' we got around, and all have dinner together."

"Huh. That actually doesn't sound too bad." added York.

The three all nodded in agreement, and decided that they all wanted to get some more sleep before they got back.

Maine sighed as he watched the three sitting together while adjusting himself around in the two seats he had because of his size. When he finally settled on a seating position, his thoughts went back to the many fights the team had Pakistan. He remembered the loud gunfire, the explosions, and most importantly to him, the deaths of the terrorists. He let out another sigh, rubbing his bald head, and then he leaned his head back, closing his eyes like everyone else on the plane.


	5. Want me to continue?

Hey guys, over the time this story has been up I noticed some of you all favoriting it and following it too. I'd like to know if you guys think I should continue it or not- just comment or something I suppose.


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Carolina woke up to her 6:30 am alarm on her phone. She let out a yawn before getting out of bed. She forgot that she still had to go to work today even though York was coming back.

 _This sucks_ , thought Carolina. She made her way into the bathroom, took a quick shower, dried her hair, brushed her teeth, got dressed in a turquoise shirt with a brown cardigan sweater to go over it, and ate some breakfast all in a matter of forty-five minutes. After finishing her morning routine, she grabbed her purse, put her phone in her pocket, and nabbed her keys off the counter before heading out of her apartment.

Upon exiting her apartment, Carolina was met with one of her very good friends, Connie, whom she nearly ran into since she was in such a big hurry to go into work.

"Connie! Sorry sorry!" exclaimed Carolina.

"Whoah- it's fine, nothing to worry about." replied Connie.

"Yeah..it's just I was trying to get to work, and York's coming home, and- and I'm just kind've 'off' today if that makes any sense." explained Carolina.

"Holy crap! York is coming home?!" replied a practically screaming Connie.

"Yeah! Wait- why are you so excited?" said Carolina with a quirking brow.

"Well, I was just coming here to tell you that I would fill in for you. You always overwork yourself, and hey I guess it worked out pretty well for you now." smiled Connie.

Carolina immediately pulled Connie into a tight hug. "That's so sweet of you Connie..I guess I should head to the airport. I promise I'll repay you in some way."

"Oh you don't have to repay me. Just go find York 'cause I bet he's looking for you- or will be. I don't know." shrugged Connie, then turning to get back into her own car. She waved at Carolina before she drove off which left Carolina to think for a few moments.

Snapping out of her daydream, Carolina practically hopped into her 2016 Honda Civic and pushed the on button. It was a gift from York with the help of his parents, and a paid off one at that. Satisfied that she was okay to back up from her parking space, she did, then giving the car some gas and accelerating to the main road. She quickly made her way onto the interstate with her destination being the JFK Airport in New York.

The screech of the C-130's tires on the pavement of the airport were enough to get York's heart going. It's not that didn't like flying, it was landing that always had him anxious.

"York. You okay man?" said North as he gave him a nudge on his shoulder to grab his attention.

"Huh? Oh- yeah yeah." responded York quite idly.

"Yeah, well you had better be good. 'You know who' is going to be looking for you."

"Yeah, of course North. Of course."

"What gives man? Plane ride got your panties in a wad?"

"What? No. I'm fine. I guess I'm just anxious to get off is all."

North nodded as he gripped York's shoulder just a little harder. "Un-wad yourself. That woman has been dying to see you, and you are dying to see her as well- hell even I know that even though your current state suggests you could care less."

York smirked at North before taking a hand and copying North's shoulder grip. "Alright. Yeah, you're right."

And just like that they were at the gate. The cargo bay doors of the plane opened up and all of the platoon members grabbed their gear and stepped off into the blinding sun. They were all sporting their dressier UCP fatigues with their tan combat boots with a hefty olive drab pack in tow. When they finally made it to the air conditioning of JFK they were met with a bunch of happy families clapping for their return. Various platoon members went to meet their girlfriends, parents, brothers, sisters, whatever. North and Wash stuck with York as he kept looking for Carolina whom he didn't see.

"She's gotta be around here." reassured Wash.

"Yeah, don't worry York." affirmed North.

"I don't know man. She had work today." said York with a skeptical sadness in his voice.

"YORK!" screamed a woman behind a bulk of the crowd who was quite literally shoving her way through.

York immediately smiled upon seeing the beautiful red hair Carolina had, and even more so when he got a glimpse of her green eyes. North and Wash simply pushed York forward which earned a glare in their direction from the man himself. That was cut short when Carolina practically tackled him, but York was quite strong so he simply caught her and gave her the biggest hug she could have asked for.

"I missed you so much York." breathed Carolina.

"I know. Me too Lina." responded York, a happiness in his voice. Quite the opposite of earlier.

"Alright you lovebirds, let's get out of the main walkway, yeah?" butted in North.

The 'Lovebirds' broke apart for a moment to get out of the way, but not before they shared a quick but blissful kiss. Something they both nearly forgot the feeling of.

"So. What's next?" squeaked Wash as he fiddled with his 8-point cap.

"Well. Where's your family North? Wash?" asked York as he looked between them.

"Oh, well I didn't get a chance to tell my sis, so I'll just have to surprise her." said North.

"Same here. Mom and Dad should be quite happy to see me." gleamed Wash.

"Alright, I can drop you guys off wherever." offered Carolina.

"Yeah, it's the least we can do." nodded York.

"That would be nice. Maybe drop me off at my parents and then I can drop North off." agreed Wash.

"Sounds cool with me. Hell, I get to sleep for a while again." smiled North at the thought of some more rest.

Finally after swapping radio stations and driving all over the place for a few hours, it was finally down to Carolina and York in the Civic. When they finally got back to Carolina's apartment, they were both equally tired, but York still had some energy which prompted him to make some dinner for the two of them.

"Voila! Mac and Cheese!" smirked York. He was a good cook, but he settled with a box of Kraft since it was late.

"Oh boy." said Carolina with a sarcastic tone.

"Hey! Kraft is the best. Well at least when I'm not the one making the food." shrugged York, visibly tired now.

They both sat on the couch across from the T.V. and just ate their dinner in silence. Truth be told they were starting to get pretty tired now, but thankfully it was a Friday so neither had anything to worry about. As soon as they finished their meal, Carolina leaned against York who leaned his head against her's which eventually led to the two cuddling on the couch as they drifted away into a fine night of rest.


End file.
